ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting, National Heritage and Culture Attaullah Tarar has said that Pakistan will continue to support the just struggle of Kashmiris for the right to self-determination until they are freed from illegal Indian rule.
He was addressing a press conference here on Monday along with Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Engineer Gilgit Baltistan Amir Muqam.
He said that the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan under the leadership of Amir Muqam launched a historic campaign on the occasion of Youm-e-Istehsal to highlight Indian atrocities in Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
Tarar said on 5 August 2019 that the special status of Kashmir was ended by India’s Modi regime through unilateral and illegal actions. He said that India has unleashed a reign of terror in Occupied Kashmir by usurping all the fundamental rights of the unfortunate Kashmiri people.
The minister said that India illegally and unlawfully occupied the state as it was a disputed territory and Kashmiris were promised the right of self-determination by the UN. He said that India is not only constantly violating human rights in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, but also violating UN Security Council resolutions.
The Minister said that the Government of Pakistan has always condemned Indian atrocities in IIOJK and has raised its voice in all relevant forums.
During the rule of the Pakistan Democratic Movement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in his speech to the United Nations General Assembly, demanded that the right to self-determination be given to the Kashmiri people as promised by the United Nations.
On the basis of illegal, immoral and unjustified actions of 2019, the special status of occupied Kashmir was revoked by the Modi regime and since then India has been committing worst human rights violations in the valley, he alleged. He said that the right to self-determination is the fundamental right of the Kashmiri masses and Pakistan will continue to support their birthright of freedom.
The minister said that New Delhi should immediately withdraw the illegal and unlawful actions of August 5, 2019 and restore the special status of Kashmir and take steps to hold a free and impartial plebiscite in Kashmir under the auspices of the United Nations.
Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu Kashmir Government for organizing protest rallies, seminars, walks and other programs to show solidarity with Kashmiri brothers and sisters.
The minister said that India, the so-called largest democratic state of the world, has been continuously violating human rights since 1947 and has been intensifying it since August 5, 2019. He called on the international community to put pressure on India to stop state terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir and end the military siege. from 2019.
The minister said that the incumbent government has been effectively raising the issue of Kashmir in all relevant global forums and the time will soon come when Kashmiris will be freed from Indian subjugation.
At the end of the press conference, a documentary on Unheard-The Invisible Trauma of Kashmir was screened, highlighting the atrocities committed by the Indian occupation forces since the partition of the subcontinent. The Kashmiris of the IIOJK testified in the document which renewed the promise that the freedom struggle would continue to its logical conclusion.
